What is your long term Dicor plan?

[kfp673]

Our camper is 2 years old. I check the roof on average 3 or 4 times per year and wash it twice. Each time I touch up questionable spots all over the roof. Today I added quite a bit along the front seal where the roof meets the front cap.

My question is, when (if ever) do you, or have you decided you have put on enough, it's time to pull it all off and start fresh? I feel like continuing to add cant be a great idea long term. Our previous camper which we had for nearly 15 years we had Eterna bond, but I am not interested in using that at this point on this trailer. Anyway, do you all just keep adding or do you eventually somehow remove the old and reseal the entire roof or sections?

Thanks

[covered_wagon]

Now this just my opinion not tossing tomatoes at anyone here, but I would rather see what I got for a problem not have tape covering it. not being able to see where a problem is, is important. If Dicor has a problem you can see it by close inspection usually.

I suspect Eternabond tape would perform a lot better if the membrane tape portion was the EPDM rubber roof slitted into strips or tapelike form. Not a plastic or vinyl membrane tape.

[JIMNLIN]

I've witnessed it lifting. Yep actually curling up on the edges and then highway speeds make the curl catch wind and gradually pull loose enough exposing the damaged area underneath. It leaked. The plastic tape shrinks and curls then wind and suns heat does the rest.It turns to something I won't use.

Were seeing more and more issues around the net with the tape as more folks are using it on their rvs.... even if it was applied properly. Properly or improperly installed Its still a good idea to seal the edges with Dicor or any good sealant made for rv roof application.

[LarryJM]

covered wagon wrote:
I didn't apply the curled Eternabond it was an RV that came in that way for a new roof. When we applied the new roof we went with two coats of the roll on adhesive and worked well for bonding to the roof. Plastic shrinks in UV light and thus the curling. If you guys are having good results though, I think you should use it. I like the smoothing out working into the surface back and forth with the Dicor and straight line masking.

Well then your post is even more misleading since you have no idea how the Eternabond was applied originally. Also, your "ASSUMPTION" IMO a somewhat poor one at that is simply incorrect as it applies to the covering on Eternabond. I have more Eternabond on my roof than I would guess 99% of the posters here and after 12 years of it sitting uncovered outside not a single piece has curled/shrunk or come loose except for that very front edge on my front cap roof seam. All of it looks as good as the day back in the Spring of 2008 that I originally applied it.

Larry

[covered_wagon]

I didn't apply the curled Eternabond it was an RV that came in that way for a new roof. When we applied the new roof we went with two coats of the roll on adhesive and worked well for bonding to the roof. Plastic shrinks in UV light and thus the curling. If you guys are having good results though, I think you should use it. I like the smoothing out working into the surface back and forth with the Dicor and straight line masking.

[LarryJM]

TurnThePage wrote:

covered wagon wrote:

LarryJM wrote:

kfp673 wrote:
Thanks everyone!

Regarding eternabond it's easy to get mixed reviews. Lots of online reviews of people having water work it's way under and it turns into a mess.

IMO that statement about "LOTS OF ONLINE REVIEWS and WATER", is simply NOT TRUE. Unless it's improperly applied or the product is defective (Eternabond does have a shelf life of around 5 yrs), water simply will not work it's way under the tape.

Larry

I've witnessed it lifting. Yep actually curling up on the edges and then highway speeds make the curl catch wind and gradually pull loose enough exposing the damaged area underneath. It leaked. The plastic tape shrinks and curls then wind and suns heat does the rest.It turns to something I won't use.

I've seen that too. On my own RV. It only happened once. I believe it was that evil bad run of product they had at one time. I've used probably 150' of the stuff over the years. I've also used the Dicor product. Eternabond is a much more permanent, and reliable solution.

Your issue was improper application. Eternabond clearly states that when a leading edged is exposed perpendicular to the seam at uninterupted highway speeds that leading edge can come loose and they recommend applying a thin layer of sealant/caulk to that leading edge to prevent that issue. I had to do that on the very front strip on my front cap Eternabond strip to prevent it from coming loose.

Also the poster complaining about the covering shrinking is again actually improperly applying the product since you absolutely cannot pull or "stretch" Eternabond over anything since the microsealant is elastic and will pull loose over time if under tension.

Larry

[TurnThePage]

covered wagon wrote:

LarryJM wrote:

kfp673 wrote:
Thanks everyone!

Regarding eternabond it's easy to get mixed reviews. Lots of online reviews of people having water work it's way under and it turns into a mess.

IMO that statement about "LOTS OF ONLINE REVIEWS and WATER", is simply NOT TRUE. Unless it's improperly applied or the product is defective (Eternabond does have a shelf life of around 5 yrs), water simply will not work it's way under the tape.

Larry

I've witnessed it lifting. Yep actually curling up on the edges and then highway speeds make the curl catch wind and gradually pull loose enough exposing the damaged area underneath. It leaked. The plastic tape shrinks and curls then wind and suns heat does the rest.It turns to something I won't use.

I've seen that too. On my own RV. It only happened once. I believe it was that evil bad run of product they had at one time. I've used probably 150' of the stuff over the years. I've also used the Dicor product. Eternabond is a much more permanent, and reliable solution.

[covered_wagon]

LarryJM wrote:

kfp673 wrote:
Thanks everyone!

Regarding eternabond it's easy to get mixed reviews. Lots of online reviews of people having water work it's way under and it turns into a mess.

IMO that statement about "LOTS OF ONLINE REVIEWS and WATER", is simply NOT TRUE. Unless it's improperly applied or the product is defective (Eternabond does have a shelf life of around 5 yrs), water simply will not work it's way under the tape.

Larry

I've witnessed it lifting. Yep actually curling up on the edges and then highway speeds make the curl catch wind and gradually pull loose enough exposing the damaged area underneath. It leaked. The plastic tape shrinks and curls then wind and suns heat does the rest.It turns to something I won't use.

[LarryJM]

kfp673 wrote:
Thanks everyone!

Regarding eternabond it's easy to get mixed reviews. Lots of online reviews of people having water work it's way under and it turns into a mess.

IMO that statement about "LOTS OF ONLINE REVIEWS and WATER", is simply NOT TRUE. Unless it's improperly applied or the product is defective (Eternabond does have a shelf life of around 5 yrs), water simply will not work it's way under the tape.

Larry

[Dave_H_M]

i think the OP needs to find another hobby and give the roof a rest/break. My 10 year old roof has never been washed.

[covered_wagon]

ajriding wrote:
Lap sealant comes in self-leveling and regular. The self-leveling should run down into crevaces and such with no need to brush on. The tape is a good idea.

St clair is made up, but a location was required when registering, even for those who prefer more private internet security...

Yes it does, However working it into the surface both directions has an added benefit on the micro level. Kind of like the difference between brushing paint to work it into the surface for greater adhesive quality. Then the masking makes for a professional straight line job while working it back and forth into the repair.

[ajriding]

Lap sealant comes in self-leveling and regular. The self-leveling should run down into crevaces and such with no need to brush on. The tape is a good idea.

St clair is made up, but a location was required when registering, even for those who prefer more private internet security...

[covered_wagon]

I use blue tape to mask off the area to be repaired. This affords the chance to use a throwaway brush with the bristles cut off for a little siffer brush and work the Dicor caulking well into the repair. Brushing back and forth to work well into the cracks, or work past dirt or any residue left on the surface. When you pull the tape off you end up with a nice straight line, very professional without smears yet worked well into the surface repair.

[kfp673]

ajriding wrote:
I have done water damage repair on several campers. Just a small amount of water will ruin a wall or roof.

My plan is to touch up the dicor once. I do not layer and layer it on a spot, after a spot has been touched up then the 2nd time I will scrape it off and start from bare. It scrapes off so easy with a scraper.

Being paranoid about water damage is good. Water means death and is why RV's typically die. Water damage is the majority of problems in RVs.

A friend kept layering on silicone and it looked like an ice cave formation, but still leaked. Silicone is a disaster as it is hard to scrape off and layering it on just made the leaks more of a labryrinth

I have used Eterna bound. If you over-lap the tape then that area will leak. Use Dicore where it overlaps as the tape will never fill in the tiny right angles the tape makes on its edges. Use dicore everywhere the tape meets or overlaps, then it will work and likely not leak. Dicor is easy because it can just be scrapped off and redone, where Tape makes a mess to redo.
Tape has its uses.

I'm feeling like this is most likely the route I am heading. As noted, we have owned the camper 2 years. I have touched up many individual spots but nothing more than once. Now that I have added a lot across the front seal we will see how it ages. I have never removed Decor so it's good to know it's not difficult. Thanks again all!

Unrelated.. Is it St Clair PA you are from? Spent lots of time outside St Clair ATV riding over the years but it's been a while.

[ajriding]

I have done water damage repair on several campers. Just a small amount of water will ruin a wall or roof.

My plan is to touch up the dicor once. I do not layer and layer it on a spot, after a spot has been touched up then the 2nd time I will scrape it off and start from bare. It scrapes off so easy with a scraper.

Being paranoid about water damage is good. Water means death and is why RV's typically die. Water damage is the majority of problems in RVs.

A friend kept layering on silicone and it looked like an ice cave formation, but still leaked. Silicone is a disaster as it is hard to scrape off and layering it on just made the leaks more of a labryrinth

I have used Eterna bound. If you over-lap the tape then that area will leak. Use Dicore where it overlaps as the tape will never fill in the tiny right angles the tape makes on its edges. Use dicore everywhere the tape meets or overlaps, then it will work and likely not leak. Dicor is easy because it can just be scrapped off and redone, where Tape makes a mess to redo.
Tape has its uses.